


A New Debt

by flipflop_diva



Category: Ant-Man (Movies), Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Falling In Love, First Kiss, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Rescue, Strangers to Lovers, pre-Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2018-10-05
Packaged: 2019-07-25 17:21:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16202129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flipflop_diva/pseuds/flipflop_diva
Summary: Natasha didn't like being beholden to anyone. Especially to two strangers to whom she now owed a debt. But there was something about Hope Van Dyne, and it was making it hard to leave like she wanted to.





	A New Debt

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rivulet027](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rivulet027/gifts).



They were gone. Steve and Bucky. They were going to make it. They were going to find the other winter soldiers and make everything right. That was the important part.

The rest was just what came next.

She didn’t move as the sirens in the distance grew louder. Grew closer. T’Challa was climbing to his feet, his eyes on her, steady, cold. 

She didn’t blame him. He was never going to understand. He was going to tell everyone. Tony was never going to forgive her. Tony was never going to understand. She barely understood herself, except she had known it was right.

She knew Steve. She trusted him. He would never have stopped when he was doing what he thought was right. So she did what she thought was right. And come what may.

The sirens were growing louder. She stepped around T’Challa, making her way out of the hanger. And froze.

In the distance, she could see Tony on the ground, bent over a shape that looked like Rhodey. Around them stood Clint and Wanda and Sam and the one who could turn into a bug, all of them with matching horrified expressions.

“What …?” she started to say, as T’Challa raced by her, heading toward Tony and Rhodey. Vision was flying toward them too. On the ground to her right Peter, the young boy, was still lying motionless. In the distance, she could see the ambulances approaching. Tony lifted his head, raised his arms, yelling something she couldn’t quite make out.

She felt like her head was spinning. She took a step toward Tony and Rhodey — she needed to see what had happened — but a hand was on her arm. 

She spun.

“Come on,” said a dark-haired woman. She was pointing in a direction away from the commotion on the ground. 

Natasha stared at her. She looked familiar, like maybe she had seen her before, but she didn’t remember fighting her. She started to move again, away from the woman and toward Tony, but the woman’s fingers on her wrist held steady.

“If you don’t get out of here now,” the dark-haired woman said, “they will lock you up along with the rest of them.”

Natasha knew that. She could make out the shapes of the police cars now in the distance. In a few minutes they would be here. T’Challa would tell them what happened, and she would be locked up along with everyone else — Sam, Wanda, Clint, the bug guy. But she knew that. She had accepted that, the moment she made her choice.

“You’re a former Russian assassin that Russia wants back,” the dark-haired woman said. “Do you really trust them not to give you back to them?”

Natasha stopped trying to get out of her grip. Words echoed in her head. Clint’s. When she had called him to tell him about the mess that was the Accords and the friction between Tony and Steve.

“Stay out of it, Nat,” he had warned her. “No one is going to do anything to hurt Captain America or Iron Man. But you’ve always been another story.”

The dark-haired woman was still talking. “Steve can rescue them with your help, right?” she was saying. “But how can you help them if they take you too?”

Natasha didn’t answer. The dark-haired woman seemed to take that as confirmation of what she was saying.

“Come on,” the dark-haired woman said, and she tugged at Natasha’s arm again. This time Natasha went with her, darting back inside the hangar, with one glance toward her friends all waiting for their fates to arrive. 

•••

Her name was Hope. The dark-haired woman. And she, too, could shrink into a tiny little bug. Which Natasha discovered when she shrunk the car she had led her to once they had both gotten inside.

She had a father, Hank Pym, who could also shrink — Natasha knew his name from her days at SHIELD — and who was there on the far outskirts of the airport when they finally resumed normal size.

“Come on,” he said. “I know where we can go.”

They ended up in the countryside, far away from anyone else, and Natasha watched as Hank Pym pulled a replica of a house out of his pocket, and then that house appeared in front of her in real size.

Natasha had seen a lot, especially in the past few years. Aliens and gods and people with superpowers. But standing in the middle of the country, with two people she didn’t know, knowing she had left her friends to be taken by the United Nations, knowing that Steve was out there somewhere doing who knows what and that people would be after him too, she felt her head spinning, felt off-balance.

She hadn’t realized she really was until Hope and Hank had each grabbed an arm to keep her from falling.

“Come on,” Hope said. “Let’s go inside. I’ll explain everything.”

•••

One thing Natasha had never liked was being beholden to people. She didn’t want to owe anyone anything. She didn’t want to have debts gone unpaid. 

Hope told her that first night how she had gotten to be there.

“Scott let it slip,” she said, then rolled her eyes. “He’s a bit of an idiot. We came after him to keep him out of trouble.”

“I guess that didn’t work,” Natasha said.

“Not exactly,” Hope answered.

“He’s an idiot,” Hank chimed in.

“So why did you help me?” Natasha asked. “There were so many people there.”

“Because we were watching,” Hope said. “I saw what you did for Steve. You don’t deserve to be exiled for something like that.”

“And they would kill you,” Hank said simply. “As much of an idiot as Scott is, he won’t be killed. American, rights, blah blah blah.” He looked at her. “You not so much.”

Hank and Hope, they kept their words too. They helped find out what was happening — as expect, everyone on Steve’s side was locked up in the Raft. Rhodey had surgery but was going to make it. Tony was back at the Avengers compound with Vision.

They helped her make contact with Steve so she could tell him how to rescue the others. And they kept her safe, hidden away with them where no one could find them.

She thought about leaving — a lot. About just walking out the door and leaving a note saying thank you and that she would return the favor whenever she could. But she wasn’t sure where she could go that she wouldn’t be found. And she wasn’t sure that being alone was better than not being alone. 

So she stayed, every day more beholden to two people she didn’t want to be beholden to, but she couldn’t seem to make herself leave, no matter how much she eyed the world beyond.

Plus there was Hope. With her dark eyes and her dark hair and her strength and her grace and Natasha felt drawn to her more than she had to anyone in a long time.

They were sitting together one night, out on the porch, looking across the fields and listening to the owls chirp. Hank was in his lab, doing research.

“So you and Scott?” Natasha said. She had been wanting to ask for a while, but she hadn’t thought it was appropriate. It was none of her business, after all, but they had heard just that afternoon that Scott was back home, under house arrest, and Pym was already talking about them moving back to the States as well.

Hope looked at her, the question hanging in the air between them, and then she laughed.

“No,” she said. “Well, okay, there was a little fooling around. But no. He’s not my type. I like them smart. And strong.”

Natasha nodded.

“So you and Steve?” Hope said, and Natasha blinked at her in surprise.

“No,” she said instantly. “He’s one of my best friends. That’s it.”

“You guys never …?” Hope said.

“Nope.” Natasha wondered if she should say more. She decided to risk it. “I like the dark-haired ones,” she said.

“That’s interesting.” Hope leaned forward so she was even closer to Natasha. “I like the redheads.”

And then Hope kissed her. Her lips on Natasha’s, firm and intense, and Natasha barely had time to realize what was happening before Hope was drawing back.

It was the second time since she had met Hope that she felt like her head was spinning and she was losing control.

“I’m sorry,” Hope said. Natasha thought she must have her confusion written across her face. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

“No,” Natasha said. “You should have definitely done that.”

“Okay,” Hope said. “So I should do it again?”

“I think that would be good.”

“If you insist …”

“I do.”

•••

They didn’t really talk about what was happening between them. They kissed at nights on the front porch while Hank worked in his lab. Sometimes, Hope slipped her warm hands up Natasha’s shirt and under her bra and cupped her breasts while they kissed, and Natasha moaned into her mouth. One night, Hope slipped her hand beneath the waistband of Natasha’s pants and into her underwear and stroked her hard, and Natasha moaned more. 

The next night, they both ended up in Hope’s bed while Hank worked in his lab, both of them naked and moaning. When they were done, Natasha curled into Hope’s side and let Hope play with her hair — now dyed blonde in preparation for their trip back to the States — and fell asleep against her.

When she woke up in the morning, Hope’s side of the bed was empty, and for the first time since they had started making out on the front porch, Natasha felt the urge once again to run. To pack up and leave a thank you note and just disappear into the world outside.

She could find someplace to go — she always had before. She could find Steve perhaps, go back to being his partner. Or she could make it on her own, slipping from city to city in the dead of night, the only thing to worry about each day being how to survive. How to stay alive.

Instead, she sat up and slipped back into her clothes and made her way downstairs. Hope and Hank were sitting in the kitchen, sipping coffee and staring at each other.

“Am I interrupting?” she asked them hesitantly, but they both looked over and smiled at her.

“Not at all,” Hope said.

“It’s time,” Hank said. “We need to go back.”

She had known this was coming — they had been planning it for weeks — but hearing the words come out of his mouth, the urge to run was back stronger than ever. How could she go back ….? If they found her …?

“We won’t let them find you,” Hope said.

“I can’t hide forever,” Natasha answered. “I can’t let you protect me forever.”

“What if we want to?” Hope said.

“Do you want to?”

Hank stood up. “I’m going to go get things ready.” He ruffled both their heads as he walked past. “I’ll see you girls soon.”

They watched him go.

“I don’t how to do this,” Natasha said, once the sound of his footsteps faded away. “Be dependent on someone.”

“Be in a relationship with someone,” Hope said. Natasha couldn’t tell if she was making a statement or asking a question.

“I’m not the type of person people want to be in a relationship with,” Natasha said.

“I don’t think that’s true,” Hope told her.

“I’m supposed to be an Avenger,” Natasha said. “I’m supposed to be helping people. Saving the world. Not hiding.”

Hope cocked her head. “How about this?” she said. “We go back. I let my dad finally tell you what he’s been working on. Then you help us. And then we help you. Find Steve or make amends with Tony or just save the world on our own. Whatever you want to do.” Hope reached out a hand then, toward Natasha. “I’m just not ready to throw this away yet. Whatever it is. I don’t want you to either.”

Natasha looked at Hope, looked at Hope’s hand, thought about the way she made her feel, thought about running. Right now. Just leaving.

She reached out her hand, took Hope’s in hers, took a breath.

“Okay,” she said. “You have a deal.”


End file.
